Syria said on Saturday Israel wanted to create excuses for war by spreading false reports that an Israeli air raid targeted a site linked to weapons of mass destruction. According to Reuters, Syrian Vice President Farouq al-Shara said his country did not want war "in the distant or near future".

"They (Israel) are making up things to justify an aggression in the future. They are playing on public opinion to mislead it," he said.

Meanwhile, Israel on Saturday ruled out war with Syria. "There is no danger of war," Amos Gila, political advisor to Israel's defense ministry, told state radio. According to him, the army's priority on the occupied Golan Heights was "to return to full operational capacity in order to prepare for any contingency in the future".

However, he said, "there is no danger of direct confrontation between Israel and Syria because the two countries are not interested".

According tp AFP, Gila also dismissed recent air alerts which have forced Israel to scramble jets as "isolated incidents of no consequence because the two countries don't want war".